What Makes A Great Release?

[updownstart]

Hi Guys and Gals!

First off let me premise my first post by stating I do not want this to turn into another UD vs ITG debate...theres enough of those around! I am just curious as to what generally makes a release seen as great or a hit. Why do most collectors view UD's lineup this year as a collection of misses? Can anyone pinpoint what season was UD's last great lineup (not when the company itself started to sink)? What would make future releases better such as with the cup? Just curious what you fine people think!!!

Cheers!

[HammerHawks]

For me, a great release is anything with Niklas Hjalmarsson in it. I know this isn't what you meant, but that's how I kind of view it since I don't break much...

[deankal]

I think VALUE is one of the most important key factors for people case breaking. I know everybody says it's a gamble and it is 100%, but you have to get some value (some bang for your buck) otherwise it all goes downhill from there. I don't mind NOT getting anything for the pc or not getting a HUGE shield or 1/1 card as long as there is something in there that helps with the cost of the breaks.

Nowadays, I follow a few case breaks from time to time and I cringe at what the guy pulls. No value at all and it seems to be happening in all their products and that scares me. It scared me enough that I decided whole-heartedley not to crack anymore. Gone are the good old days where you're crack a case of 05-06 The Cup and you'd know there a pack with "foam' in it or they actually state the odds of the jersey/auto cards in every pack and now everything seems to be on "average". Totally turned me off.....

As for ITG I luv the fact that they're here for the collector....game used pieces, great collaboration with the collectors, super customer service......all in all they care about us collectors 100%. The reason I never really collected them or cracked their product is because I was a rookie collector. And also that they're big hits on the secondary market don't seem to produce a lot of money.

Thus the reason I mainly just pick up cards I need or the pc and leave the case breaking to others.........and picking up a few vintage cards from time to time.

[flemingc04]

A great release to me is a product that has some consistancy between boxes and has an overall outcome that doesn't leave the custoemr leaving feeling down at the end. What I mean by this is that some products are so hit or miss like UD Ice. It would be great if a lot of the "hits" and "duds" where kind of spread out evenly somehow so that we see a lot fo fair breaks. It's still nice to see the odd box that is absolutely phenomenal, but I feel bad for those who lay down $120 for a box and comes out with a bunch of D-listed rookies and autos.

In terms of coalation, this year I found Upper Deck Series 1 to be similar to 05-06 UD Series 2. Back in November I bought a box of 09-10 UD Series 1 four different times and from different dealers at the Fall Expo in Toronto. Three of those boxes were quite similar in terms of Young Guns and Jerseys. In each of those three boxes the YGs were very similar between them and so were the jerseys (especially Galiardi & Van Riemsdyk YGs and Helpern and Lupul jersyes). Now while getting 3 Van Riemsdyk YGs was quite nice, I would prefer getting a different break than almost a exact repeat of boxes one and two especially since I was beginning to build the set.

While a great break will be subjective to everyone's own opoinion, a great product to me is something with great coalation, and a good mix of hits so that the boxes seem fair. I know I'm missing some other things that I think make a great release, but these are the main two.

[updownstart]

Great thanks for the replies! How much does stuff such as card design and quality of patches matter?

[TeamChevelle]

To me hard signed autos with vintage players....04-05 Legendary Signatures, 06-07 Parkhurst, 08-09 Masterpieces and the Montreal Centennial set.

[Prime B]

Hard signed autos.

Good design.

Game Used Memorabilia.

Pre-release checklist that is CORRECT.

That last one is the big one in my opinion. How does a collector know if his her team or players are REALLY in there in the checklist keeps changing?

And what about the guy trying to recoup his money but the whole dynamic of the product changes just be deleting 5-10 big name players that were expected hits from all the subsets?

BRUTAL!

[fdp79]

Hard signed autos.

Good design.

Game Used Memorabilia.

Pre-release checklist that is CORRECT.

That last one is the big one in my opinion. How does a collector know if his her team or players are REALLY in there in the checklist keeps changing?

And what about the guy trying to recoup his money but the whole dynamic of the product changes just be deleting 5-10 big name players that were expected hits from all the subsets?

BRUTAL!

AMEN!!....oh and dont forget actually releasing the product when you initially say you are.... not pushing the product back by months at a time...then cut the checklist in half and then still have redemptions for some of the "big" hits ...like crosby autos....and several ultimate rookies #d to 99.....i should stop now